Principal Optical Metrology & Test Engineer

MKS Instruments; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 115,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) with company match

Paid holidays

Sick time

Vacation days

Parental leave

Job summary

MKS Systems Irvine, part of MKS Instruments, is seeking a Principal Measurement & Test Engineer to advance measurement solutions across the product lifecycle. You will design and deploy advanced measurement approaches in support of development, qualification, and manufacturing, and drive robust data-driven test practices in a cleanroom and lab setting.

With 8+ years in measurement systems, you will lead calibration, correlation, and verification efforts, partnering with engineering, quality, and

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Optical Engineering, Physics, Photonics, Applied Physics, or related field.
• 8+ years of industry experience in measurement systems, test engineering, metrology, optical characterization, product verification, qualification, or related engineering disciplines.
• Understanding of calibration methodologies, uncertainty analysis, correlation studies, error budgeting, and measurement system performance.
• Experience developing and deploying measurement systems for optical, opto-mechanical, photonic, semiconductor, or precision-engineered products.
• Experience developing characterization, verification, qualification, and test methodologies for complex products and assemblies.
• Hands-on experience with optical instrumentation, optical metrology, laser beam analysis, optical characterization, interferometry, imaging systems, spectroscopy, fiber optic systems, precision positioning systems, or related precision measurement systems.
• Experience with measurement automation, data acquisition systems, and data analysis tools.
• Experience applying quantitative and statistical analysis methods, including design of experiments (DOE), process capability analysis, and related problem-solving approaches.
• Proficiency with Python, MATLAB, JMP, LabVIEW, Minitab, or equivalent software tools.
• Effective troubleshooting, communication, collaboration, and technical documentation skills.

Responsibilities

• Define, design, and deploy measurement methodologies, calibration strategies, correlation methods, and measurement solutions supporting product development, qualification, and manufacturing.
• Define measurement system capability requirements, uncertainty budgets, performance targets, and acceptance criteria to support accurate, repeatable, and traceable measurements.
• Develop and support characterization, verification, and qualification methodologies used to evaluate product performance against requirements.
• Develop measurement architectures, instrumentation strategies, automated data acquisition systems, and analysis solutions that improve measurement capability, efficiency, and scalability.
• Develop correlation methodologies and support implementation and troubleshooting of measurement and test solutions across development, qualification, and manufacturing environments.
• Participate in design reviews, DfX activities, risk assessments, and process development efforts to establish robust measurement and test strategies throughout the product lifecycle.
• Investigate and resolve measurement, correlation, test, and manufacturing issues through data-driven root-cause analysis and corrective actions.
• Partner with engineering, quality, and manufacturing teams to ensure measurement and test solutions support product performance, qualification, and manufacturing objectives.
• Develop technical documentation and provide guidance on measurement and test methodologies, equipment, and best practices.

Skills

Optical Engineering

Test Engineering

Metrology

Data Analysis

Python

MATLAB

LabVIEW

DOE

Uncertainty Analysis

Statistical Methods

Education

Bachelor's degree in Optical Engineering, Physics, Photonics

Master's degree preferred

Tools

Python

MATLAB

LabVIEW

JMP

Minitab

Job description

MKS Systems Irvine, part of MKS Instruments, is seeking a Principal Measurement & Test Engineer to advance measurement solutions across the product lifecycle. You will design and deploy advanced measurement approaches in support of development, qualification, and manufacturing, and drive robust data-driven test practices in a cleanroom and lab setting.

With 8+ years in measurement systems, you will lead calibration, correlation, and verification efforts, partnering with engineering, quality, and